The Awakening: Britton (Entangled Covet) by Abby Niles Page B

the markers.
    She dragged a pile of papers on the table toward her, then placed Charlie’s photo in the corner and the
    evidence bag with the blanket beside it. “Okay. We know this has to do with Samantha Mills,” she mused,
    touching the photo.
    He nodded, but remained silent.
    “The one group that was the most verbal about her conviction was MASK,” she continued. “Mutants
    Are Still Kids.”
    He pulled back a chair and sat down, grabbing a notebook and pen to take notes, needing to keep his
    focus on anything but her. “I guess that makes sense.”
    “They’ve always been vocal about their outrage at how the High Council treats the parents of mutated
    children. After Samantha Mills, their ranks really swelled. A lot of parents looked at their own child and
    had those ‘what ifs’ start to whirl around their heads.”
    “Do you think MASK is involved in this?”
    Val pursed her lips. “It seems a little too obvious, don’t you think? That’s the only thing that makes me
    hesitate about focusing on them. They have always been very peaceful. This doesn’t feel like their style.”
    “Is it possible they saw that peaceful means weren’t working and decided to amp up their efforts?” he
    asked.
    She waggled her head. “It’s always possible. But it still feels far-fetched. These parents just want their
    kids back. They are trying their best to get the laws changed from within the system, and without resorting
    to threats. I can’t see them using explosives to break into a council’s quarantine compound and exploiting
    the condition of one of the member’s children to get what they want. It’s not what MASK is about.”
    He liked the way Val’s mind worked, sorting through every possible scenario and eliminating those that
    didn’t fit. “Then who?” he asked.
    “I’m worried we’re dealing with a new underground group we’re unaware of.”
    He nodded. Exactly what he’d thought. “Could Samantha’s family be involved?”
    He shot a quick glance at her. The haphazard way she’d tossed her hair up in a ponytail sent a jolt of
    lust rocketing through him. Shocked at his out-of-the-blue reaction, he jerked his attention back to the
    paper and gulped. “What about”—he cleared his throat, mortified by the husky timbre to his words—“what
    about Samantha’s sister, the one who called the High Council and reported the child?”
    Thank the Dea , this time his voice sounded normal.
    “Riley Specter? I could see her spearheading something like this out of guilt. She had no idea what
    would happen when she turned her sister and the baby over to the council. After Samantha was sentenced,
    she flipped out in court. Spent a day in lockup.”
    “What made Samantha confide in her sister in the first place?” he asked, relieved that Val hadn’t seemed
    to pick up on the rising heat coming from his side of the table—the heat she was unknowingly causing him
    to feel. Fuck.
    “After Samantha’s mate died, she had no source of income and no moral support. She needed help on
    every level. She went to the one person she believed she could trust. Her sister. Samantha went to work,
    and Riley kept the boy.”
    “And he got away from her, right?”
    “Yep, his uncontrolled beast had a human couple cornered against a tree when she found him. As a
    result though, Riley understood how dangerous the mutation is and called the High Council.” Val shook her
    head sadly. “She assumed the baby would be taken—that was the whole point—but she didn’t realize her
    sister would get into so much trouble.”
    Sounded like a prime candidate to him.
    Thankful for something to occupy his thoughts, he grabbed his phone, dialed a number, and waited for
    the familiar gruff greeting. “Elder Harwood, we need to know the whereabouts of Riley Specter over the
    last week.”
    “I see we are on the same wavelength,” the elder said with satisfaction. “We’ve been working to locate
    some of Samantha Mills’s